GTX 1070 Max-Q vs RX 460
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | GTX 1070 Max-Q | RX 460 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 1,581 | 752 | +110.2% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 30 | 25 | +20.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 16 | 13 | +23.1% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 8 | 6 | +33.3% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 4.5 | 2.2 | +110.2% |
| VRAM | 8 GB GDDR5 | 2 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 224 | 112 | +100.0% |
| TDP (W) | 67 | 75 | — |
- GTX 1070 Max-Q averages 16 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 23% faster.
- GTX 1070 Max-Q draws less power (67W vs 75W).
Verdict: GTX 1070 Max-Q or RX 460?
GTX 1070 Max-Q advantages
- 1440p gaming (+19%)
- 4K gaming (+25%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+52%)
- Video memory (+75%)
- Memory bandwidth (+50%)
- Power efficiency (+11%)
RX 460 advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
Which should you choose?
- Choose the GTX 1070 Max-Q if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the GTX 1070 Max-Q if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
GTX 1070 Max-Q vs RX 460: which should you choose?
GTX 1070 Max-Q — NVIDIA laptop graphics card (2016, Pascal) with 8 GB of GDDR5, averaging 16 fps at 1440p.
RX 460 — AMD desktop graphics card (2016, Polaris) with 2 GB of GDDR5, averaging 13 fps at 1440p; launched at $109.
GTX 1070 Max-Q vs RX 460: GTX 1070 Max-Q is faster for gaming. GTX 1070 Max-Q averages 16 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 23% faster. GTX 1070 Max-Q draws less power (67W vs 75W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the GTX 1070 Max-Q averages 16 fps against 13. At 4K (8 vs 6 fps) VRAM (8GB vs 2GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 67 W versus 75 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the GTX 1070 Max-Q better than the RX 460?
GTX 1070 Max-Q is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. GTX 1070 Max-Q averages 16 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 23% faster.
What is the main difference between the GTX 1070 Max-Q and the RX 460?
GTX 1070 Max-Q averages 16 fps at 1440p versus 13 fps — about 23% faster. GTX 1070 Max-Q draws less power (67W vs 75W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the GTX 1070 Max-Q if you game at 1440p. Choose the GTX 1070 Max-Q if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.